Community meetings on plastic bag ban in Milpitas

City of Milpitas will hold two community meetings next week regarding a proposed city ordinance to ban the use of plastic bags at retail stores citywide.

Leslie Stobbe, the city's public information specialist, said if such a ban were implemented all Milpitas retail stores that use plastic bags of any kind would be affected, from grocery stores to the Great Mall.

"Food establishments (restaurants and take-out) would be exempt from the ban and may use plastic bags," Stobbe said.

She added community meetings on Monday, Oct. 21 and Wednesday, Oct. 23 will be held as a reminder that City of Milpitas participatedÊin an environmental impact report involving a related effort to ban bags in San Mateo County.

Stobbe said Milpitas was the first to study impacts of plastic bag and polystyrene food ware bans in the Bay Area.Ê

"The concept of a plastic bag ban was reviewed with city council on April 17, 2012," Stobbe said, adding city staffers were directed to participate in San Mateo's EIR as a study area at that meeting.Ê"The subject of polystyrene food ware bans was also reviewed."

But she said the city will not pursue an ordinance to ban "clam-shell" polystyrene containers to hold to-go food until City of San Jose takes further steps.Ê

Stobbe said a draft bag ordinance is expected to go before the city council for review on Tuesday, Nov. 19.

"Staff will have a date to recommend when the bag ban will become effective, but we're still looking at implementation schedules," she said.

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She said community meetings will allow the public to learn more about the proposed bag ban.

"There will be a staff presentation at each meeting with a review of steps taken to date and open discussion for residents on Oct. 21 and the business representatives on Oct. 23," Stobbe said. "Also, residents are welcome to attend the business meeting and vice versa, as their schedules allow."

Stobbe added the city has not received any resistance to the idea.

"No opposition whatsoever," she said. "The EIR went out for comments and I got exactly one inquiry from a Milpitas business."

Stobbe said Milpitas Chamber of Commerce had submitted an opposition letter at the April 2012 council meeting.

"I met with the board in late September and they are sincerely rethinking this position," Stobbe said.

Liz Ainsworth, the chamber of commerce president, confirmed that her 250-member nonprofit organization is polling its membership.

"We have not gotten a decision yet," Ainsworth said.

She added one may emerge in the next week. Ainsworth noted businesses who claimed shoppers came to Milpitas in order to get plastic bags items not available in San Jose.

"That's the positive side," Ainsworth said.

The first community meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21 at Milpitas City Hall's first-floor committee room, 455 E. Calaveras Blvd.

The special meeting for business representatives will be held at 10 a.m., Wednesday, Oct. 23 at city hall.

For more information about both meetings, contact Stobbe at (408) 586-3352.

Contact Ian Bauer at ibauer@themilpitaspost.com or 408-262-2454. Visit us on our social media sites at facebook.com/milpitaspost and twitter.com/milpitaspost.